1. KEY CONCEPT Ecology is the study of the relationships among organisms and their environment.

2. Environmental levels of organization:
An organism is an individual living thing (Ex: alligator)
Organism

3. A population is a group of the same species living in one area.
Organism

4. A community is a group of different species that live together in one area.
Population
Organism

5. An ecosystem includes all living and nonliving things in a given area.
Community
Population
Organism

6. A biome is a major community of organisms--includes climate conditions
Ecosystem
Community
Population
Organism

7. Ecosystems include both biotic and abiotic factors.
Biotic factors are living things.
plants
animals
fungi
bacteria
plants

8. Abiotic factors are nonliving things. moisture temperature wind
sunlight
moisture
sunlight

9. Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the variety, of living things in an ecosystem.
Importance of Biodiversity:
Interrelationships
Potential medicines
An ecosystem will most likely
remain stable if it has a high
level of biodiversity

10. Ecosystem Energy
Producers (autotrophs) make their own food.
Consumers (heterotrophs) get their energy by eating other living or once-living things.

11. Consumers are not all alike. Herbivores eat only plants.
Carnivores eat only animals.
Omnivores eat both plants and animals.
Decomposers eat dead organic matter. (fungi)
They break down organic compounds into atoms
carnivore
decomposer

12. A food chain shows a sequence of feeding relationships
A food chain shows a sequence of feeding relationships. If the grass (the producer) disappears, the cottontail (prey) has no food (dies), the hawk ( a predator) will lose its prey
DESERT COTTONTAIL
GRAMA GRASS
HARRIS’S HAWK

13. A food web shows a complex network of food chains

14. Trophic levels show flow of energy in a food chain (through nourishment/food)
90% of energy lost as it flows up the food chain.
Carnivores
Energy flow up the food chain
Herbivores (primary consumers which are (anything that only eat plants)
Producers (plants, anything that makes its own food)